The classic Sokoban puzzle game was invented in 1981 by Hiroyuki Imabayashi of Japan and first released in 1982 for the NEC PC-8801 computer by his software company, Thinking Rabbit.

This package brings you two versions of the original program, adapted to run on computers with the Microsoft Windows operating system:

"1982": The original 1982 Sokoban program.
"2022": A version featuring bug fixes and some quality-of-life improvements for a smoother gameplay experience.

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Start with the 2022 Version

Unless you're fluent in Japanese, the original 1982 version will be a challenge to navigate. While its interface is simple enough once you understand it, some initial explanation is needed.

The 2022 version comes to the rescue with English help texts, guiding you through the program. It also fixes the "disappearing goals" bug and adds features to enhance your gameplay experience:

* Direct puzzle selection (F4): Bypass the sequential puzzle order imposed by the original 1982 version.
* Undo moves (4): Go back as many steps as you need.
* Redo moves (6): Redo as many reversed steps as you need.
* Highlight destructible walls (7): See at a glance which walls can be broken.

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Remember to Press F1

After solving a puzzle, press "F1" to verify your solution and proceed to the next puzzle.

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Destructible Walls

The puzzles 11-20 feature destructible walls, a concept only explored in the very first version of the game. In the original 1982 program, these walls look identical to regular walls. The 2022 version offers different display options for the destructible walls: "No hints", "Show arrows", "Blue walls", and "Blue walls with arrows".

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Technical Information

The first Sokoban program was written in the BASIC programming language for the NEC PC-8801 computer. The Microsoft Windows versions in this package run the programs using the M88 emulator.

The M88 emulator offers a variety of features, but it lacks a direct import/export function for the BASIC source code. To address this, the 2022 version includes the "diskdrv.m88" emulator plugin. This plugin allows you to import and export the BASIC source code using the standard BASIC commands "load" and "save" with the prefix "cmd" like this:

cmd load "file name"
cmd save "file name"

The source code file must be in the same folder (directory) as the emulator, as the BASIC system doesn't support folder hierarchy symbols ("/" or "\") in file names.

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Sokoban 1982.bas

The source code in this file comes from an original program cassette and matches the code presented years later in a book about Sokoban, also by the Thinking Rabbit company.

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Sokoban 1982 Unknown Origin.bas

The source code in this file is of unknown origin, but may nevertheless be of historical interest. It appears to be the foundation for "Sokoban 1982.bas".

This can be seen by comparing the two versions. The only difference is in the sprite code. The version of unknown origin ("S??") builds the sprites by drawing them pixel by pixel on the screen and then captures the images.

The official version ("S82") has pre-built sprites in a compiled and compressed format. This requires fewer BASIC code lines, with the last sprite-loading line being number 440.

If the next code line after the sprite handling in the official version had been a round number like 500 or 1000, it would have indicated a program organization principle. However, the next line is number 685. This is exactly the same line number found in "S??" after it has used more code lines to construct and capture the sprites.

The gap in line numbers between 440 and 685 is strong evidence that the official version is based on an earlier version that used the sprite code from "S??". This evidence is as compelling as if the program authors had left their fingerprints on the code.

After all, it also makes sense that "S??" is the foundation of "S82". The sprites would need to be drawn before they could be captured and stored as compiled sprites.

The "S??" version comes from this file found on the Internet Archive:

https://archive.org/download/Neo_Kobe_NEC_PC-8801_2016-02-25/Neo%20Kobe%20-%20NEC%20PC-8801%20%282016-02-25%29.zip/NEC%20PC-8801%2FSoukoban%20%28Thinking%20Rabbit%29%2FSoukoban%20%5BCT%5D.7z

Date retrieved: 2024-04-03

The file has undergone three retouching operations. The first was for aesthetic reasons, and the other two addressed what appeared to be spelling errors compared to the official version:


10 REM ************************************
=>
10 REM *************************************


150 COLOR 5:LOCATE 10,3:PRINT"±ÅÀÊ µµ· ¿³º ¶Þ²¼¬ÃÞ ±ÙÊ޲Ħ"
=>
150 COLOR 5:LOCATE 10,3:PRINT"±ÅÀÊ µµ·Å ¿³º ¶Þ²¼¬ÃÞ ±ÙÊ޲Ħ"


170 COLOR 5:LOCATE 10,5:PRINT"¶À½ÞÙºÄÃÞ½¡ ³Ï¸ ¶À½Þ¹Ã¸ÀÞ»²¡"
=>
170 COLOR 5:LOCATE 10,5:PRINT"¶À½Þ¹ÙºÄÃÞ½¡ ³Ï¸ ¶À½Þ¹Ã¸ÀÞ»²¡"

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Sokoban FM-7.bas

The source code in this file is a version of the Sokoban program for the FM-7 computer. The source code comes from this file found on the Internet Archive:

https://archive.org/download/sokoban-fm7-hiresscans/Sokoban.t77

Date retrieved: 2024-04-16

The FM-7 version was released about the same time as the first commercially available PC-8801 version. The programs share a nearly identical codebase. Apart from adjustments made to accommodate the differences in computer architectures, their key difference lies in how sprites are managed.

Similar to the "S??" version described above, and with nearly identical code lines, the FM-7 version constructs its sprites by drawing them pixel by pixel on the screen before capturing the final images. This similarity makes the FM-7 version another program of historical interest.

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Sokoban NEC PC-8001mkII.bas

The source code in this file comes from a program cassette for the NEC PC-8001mkII computer. This  version must have been released about the same time as the first commercially available PC-8801 version. The programs share a nearly identical codebase. Apart from adjustments made to accommodate the differences in computer architectures, their key difference lies in how sprites are managed.

Similar to the "S??" version described above, and with nearly identical code lines, the PC-8001mkII version constructs its sprites by drawing them pixel by pixel on the screen before capturing the final images. This similarity makes the PC-8001mkII version another program of historical interest.

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